Manic Movie Magic: 84th Academy Awards Predictions Part Two!

After the Best Picture Award, the coveted Best Actor/Actress/Supporting Actor/Supporting Actress and Best Director Award as the most controversial, pitting performance versus performance, either popular or obscure. It’s hard to understand why some actors get picked, some get shunned, and why some just keep getting picked over and over and over again.

So this week on Manic Movie Magic, lets take a look at the whose-who in the best acting categories!

Best Actor:

Bichir, Clooney, DuJardin, Oldman, and Pitt in their Oscar-nominated roles

Demian Bichir A Better Life

…I’m sorry, who? I’m not joking – I don’t know who this actor is, or ever even heard of this movie. When did this happen??? Oh well, nothing to be done; the Academy wants what the Academy wants. Though, I will say that actors from mostly unkown and/or independent films tend to do worse in the category. Likelihood: Low

George Clooney The Descendants

Well hey there Clooney. Good to see you on the list. His performance in this, and many other films, tend to be top stuff, and so if he won, it would be well deserved. His portrayal of a father whose life is falling around him really touches home with a lot of people, and is honest about dealing with a near-impossible situation. Unlike other actors and actress on this list, I am glad it’s this movie he’s getting nominated for. Likelihood: High

Jean Dujardin The Artist

There’s a lot to be said about Dujardin’s performance. It takes a very skilled and very special actor to really be able to express themselves without words, or sound. The ability to emulate without speech is something even the most veteran of actors can have trouble with, but Dujardin does it masterfully. Likelihood: High

Gary Oldman Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

If you’ve been paying any attention to the things I write, then you know I did not like this movie. However, Oldman’s performance was subtle, filled with nuisance, and turned a boring, cliché character into something a little more special. Still, since the movie was a bit of a bore-fest and it’s not nominated for best picture, his chances are lower than some of the others. Likelihood: Medium

Brad Pitt Moneyball

No Brad Pitt, no. You go away and never return to this sacred place again! It’s not that I didn’t like the movie – I did! I don’t care much for sports movies, but I was invested in what was going on. However, if Brad Pitt wins an Oscar for THIS MOVIE I will probably throw some shit-fits and you all know how unfunny I am when in the midst of a rageful state…oh wait… Likelihood: Low

Best Actress:

Close, Davis, Streep, Mara, and Williams in their Oscar-nominated roles

Glenn Close Albert Nobbs

No one is going to argue that Close isn’t a fabulous actress. She’s refined, sophisticated, and overall, classy. So when I saw the trailer for Albert Nobbs, I knew this was going to be a good movie just on her performance alone. And I was right. She plays up Albert with such a mystery that even when we find out why she cross-dresses, her character is still hidden away from the audience’s view. Honestly, I think this is the most deserving of the nominees in this category, but with all the talent on this list, it’s anyone’s game. Likelihood: High

Viola Davis The Help

I had no idea who Viola Davis was before this film, but I’m glad I do now. It’s nice to see her in the Oscar slot rather than Emma Stone, even though she did a good job as well. Davis really succeeds in portraying the heart-breaking life of not only an African-American maid in what feels like the most racist town in America, but as a mother whose lost her son, as a widow, and just as a character all her own. I’m not sure she’s got the best chances ever, but she’s certainly a contender. Likelihood: Medium

Meryl Streep The Iron Lady

Dear Academy, please, please, please PLEASE stop giving Streep awards. We get it, she’s an amazing actress, and we love her to bits. Two problems though. One – she gets nominated in this category almost every single year she makes a semi-serious movie. Julie & Julia? Really, Academy, grow some standards! I understand she deserves all 19 nominations, with two wins, but can’t you just give her a lifetime achievement award or something? And two, her portrayal of Margaret Thatcher was good…but it wasn’t great. Honestly, I think Meryl Streep has hit her prime…she just happens to not have every declined in quality afterwards. Likelihood: Medium

Rooney Mara The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

I hate David Fincher for making what essentially ends up being a bad photocopy of the original Swedish film. The only good thing he did? Let Rooney Mara on screen. She exudes stage presence, intelligence, and attitude like she’s made of just that, and not flesh and bone. While I don’t agree per say with how Salander was portrayed but I’m glad it was her who was in the role. I am not sure if the Oscar’s got her name on it for sure, but she’s certainly in for more nominations in the future if she keeps it up. Likelihood: High

Michelle Williams My Week with Marilyn

Why Williams didn’t win this award for Blue Valentine I’ll never know but I hope it was a damn good one. Honestly, I would put her chances higher, but I haven’t seen, or heard a thing about this film, which can only mean her chances are significantly lower. Likliehood: Low

I love Branagh, but for his Shakespeare. Again, I didn’t see the film, but unlike Michelle Williams, he’s one of the more prolific and deserving actors on the list, so he actually has a higher chance of winning. You go Branagh! This could be your year! Likliehood: Medium-High

Jonah Hill MoneyBall

…they aren’t serious, right? Please tell me someone just needed to fill a fifth slot. Jonah Hill is a fine actor, but really? Best Supporting Actor? Maybe in the future, for a different film and when he’s matured a little more. Likelihood: Low

Nick Nolte Warrior

Ummm…another unknown film here. I have HEARD of Nick Nolte, but I have never seen anything he’s done, and I have no clue who even worked on this film, let alone plot or any reviews of it. Ummmm… Likelihood: ????????

Christopher Plummer Beginners

…WHERE ARE ALL OF THESE MYSTERY MOVIES COMING FROM!!?!?!? Okay, well Christopher Plummer is always good, so they wouldn’t just put him on here for shits and giggles, so it’s okay to infer he deserves it. Good luck to you man, whatever your movie was… Likliehood: Medium-High

Max Von Sydow Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Since no one seemed to like the film, I’m guessing Von Sydow got put here cause the film was in the Best Movie category. I can’t vouch for his performance but considering no one ever mentions him, it is to assume he only did all right. Likelihood: Low

Everything I wrote for Dujardin goes for Bejo. It really takes a special breed of actor to exude that type of style and expression. You feel like you know her voice without her every saying a word, and feel her strife and longing with every scene she’s in. Hopefully, she’ll get the credit she deserves, and we’ll see her again in films. Likelihood: Medium

Jessica Chastain The Help

It’s hard to play white trash with charm and dignity. It really is, and yet somehow, Chastain makes the role of Celia, a white trash woman who marries above her class, does just that. She’s a Southern Belle who’s not afraid to get dirty, but who also stumbles in the weird, confusing, and backwards world of mid 20th Century. She is like the audience, in a way, probing to see where she fits in this place only to find that she doesn’t need to fit in with the wrong crowd. However, because she is neither of the powerhouse stars of the film, I’m afraid it’s just not her film. Likelihood: Low

Melissa McCarthy Bridesmaids

I am going to type this as calmly as humanly possible. If Melissa McCarthy won, I would literally screech in pure, unadulterated happiness. Comedy has its own set of perils, and it’s nice to see that they acknowledged her stellar performance. However, comedians in a comedy role almost never win at the Oscars. Apparently, everyone who votes is allergic to laughter and sunshine and joy. Likelihood: Low

Janet McTeer Albert Nobbs

Another deserving and brave performance in the same movie? What are the odds? But seriously, Janet McTeer plays an enigmatic painter who shows Albert she’s not the only one hiding a secret. Her pain is so real, you can’t help but feel crushed with her. It may not be the best performance on the list, but the nomination is well worth it. Likelihood: Medium

Octavia Spencer The Help

I feel Spencer has had this nomination a long time coming. She is a fabulous dramatic actress whose talent has been squandered on okay, or terrible films. But as Minnie in The Help? She was spot on perfect; she wasn’t a stereotypical cutout of a African American maid, there was so much love and thought put into every delivery that when Minnie gets on her way to her own happy end, you can’t help but really believe its true. The author of The Help actually wrote the character with Spencer in mind. If that doesn’t account for her talent, nothing will. Likelihood: Medium

Stayed tuned for next week when we cover the Best Director Category. And boy, do I have a lot to say on that one…

Starshine5050

As just a regular, hard-working work, often-stressing, procrastination-mastering history and journalism student, I often turn to the silver and small screens for relief, even though I'm only an average cinema-and-television loving viewer, commenting on what, and does not, makes good entertainment. I love horror everything - book, TV shows, games, movies - even though they frighten me terribly. I'm a long time believer of the old saying "When life gives you lemons, don't take life's lemons! Give the lemons back!" So, onward I go, returning lemons and logging an unhealthy amount of screen time for your enjoyment. So please be sure to read my stuff and let me know what you think, I'm alway looking to improve and be the best, most cynical critic I can be!

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Starshine5050

As just a regular, hard-working work, often-stressing, procrastination-mastering history and journalism student, I often turn to the silver and small screens for relief, even though I'm only an average cinema-and-television loving viewer, commenting on what, and does not, makes good entertainment. I love horror everything - book, TV shows, games, movies - even though they frighten me terribly. I'm a long time believer of the old saying "When life gives you lemons, don't take life's lemons! Give the lemons back!" So, onward I go, returning lemons and logging an unhealthy amount of screen time for your enjoyment. So please be sure to read my stuff and let me know what you think, I'm alway looking to improve and be the best, most cynical critic I can be!